leonp9lbw Posted July 12, 2011 Report Share Posted July 12, 2011 Please can someone point me in the right direction with regards my dog, only I'm pulling my hair out. Right I have a two year old springer spaniel named Mac , who is excellent in all manners of working bar retrieving. he has never been interested in retrieving even as a pup but over the last few months I have managed to get him to retrieve from water with enthusiasm and whilst in the garden he will demand retrieves , Result you may say however as soon as I take him out i.e to a field or even a playing field with no scent he just is not interested. I really do not know what to do with him any advice appreciated . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garyb Posted July 12, 2011 Report Share Posted July 12, 2011 What exactly are you trying to get him to retrieve? Has the dog been on cold / warm game before? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kent Posted July 12, 2011 Report Share Posted July 12, 2011 You say ground with no scent? is there scent in the garden? are there no other dogs that use these playingfields? I think you dog might like retrieving when there is nothing better on the cards or uses it as an excuse to go for a swiming game. My GWP loves retrieving - i mean addicted to dummies, right up until the point that there is real game or bitches about, send him on a canvass bag of sawdust then and he is like a different dog retrieving them under sort of protest at best!Thing is dogs will do whatever they get the most reward from at the very time and place in question. This might be your praise or the forfilment and exersize from a game of fetch but if its check out who has visited the playing field in the last week your canvass dummy filled with sawdust might possibly be out of the equasion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GW80 Posted July 12, 2011 Report Share Posted July 12, 2011 I would stop your dog hunting completely and make him walk to heel on the lead every time you are out together. Start introducing a dummy as reward for behaving on the lead and he/she will start realising that retreving is part of its remit and will come round. You seem to have a spaniel that is following its own instinct but you need to get your own personality back into the dog!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roadkill Posted July 12, 2011 Report Share Posted July 12, 2011 what do you want to use the dog for.? hunting picking up or pigeon shooting Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hayden Posted July 12, 2011 Report Share Posted July 12, 2011 I've had this same problem with my cocker, she would retrieve (pretty much anything) in the house, in the garden, but never outside of these places, what I did in the end was get a rabbit skin covered dummy, which has worked wonders. She'll retrieve that outside these days. Also I think you need to build up on the weight of the dummy, mine certainly wouldn't pick the 1lb dummy up, but will pick the half pound version. Cheers Hayden Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pegleg31 Posted July 12, 2011 Report Share Posted July 12, 2011 Hard to say without seeing the problem first hand but if I'm thinking on the same lines as Garyb, I'd forget using dummies for a while and start using cold or warm game.Even if your dog is really hot on retrieving dummies cold/warm game will shift it up a couple of gears. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garyb Posted July 12, 2011 Report Share Posted July 12, 2011 My concern was that the dog had been introduced to game to early, and had been put off by a strong Cock runner or a loose feathered pigeon. Some dogs do shy away from dummies once they've been on game though. We could do with some more info from the OP as to the dogs history. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pegleg31 Posted July 12, 2011 Report Share Posted July 12, 2011 My concern was that the dog had been introduced to game to early, and had been put off by a strong Cock runner or a loose feathered pigeon. Some dogs do shy away from dummies once they've been on game though. We could do with some more info from the OP as to the dogs history. Ah sorry for jumping to conclusions Still I prefer to use cold/warm game for training where possible Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scolopax Posted July 13, 2011 Report Share Posted July 13, 2011 (edited) My brother has had three spanaiels (2 springers and a cocker), all have refused to retrieve when in training, all they wanted to do was hunt, then hunt and hunt some more. He was not bothered as a: he wanted them for beating, and b: he was told they would start to retrieve when they wanted to, which was exactly what happened. Both the springers suddenly started retrieving when out on shoot days, they seemed to see that it was part of the 'package', maybe obesrved the other dogs doing it, I don't know, but both became very keen retreivers when exposed to the 'real thing'. It must be that dummies and cold game are just too boring for them in their early days. The cocker is coming up to her first real season and he is confident she will retrieve when required to aswell. Edited July 13, 2011 by scolopax Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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